|
Attorney General Rob McKenna has announced he will appeal the state Supreme Court decision in State ex rel. Public Disclosure Commission v. Washington Education Ass’n, et al. To the United State’s Supreme Court.
“This decision overturns the will of the voters passing Initiative 134 — the state’s campaign finance law,” McKenna said. “Initiative 134 was approved by nearly 73 percent of the voters and we will vigorously defend it.”
The Washington State Public Disclosure Commission also voted unanimously to recommend the appeal.
The case concerned the right of the Washington Education Association to decide how to spend compulsory fees paid by educational employees who are not union members and who did not give prior permission for those fees to be used for political purposes. In the 6-3 decision, the State Supreme Court struck down a 1992 state law enacted by voters as part of Initiative 134 on campaign finance reform, finding the law unconstitutional.
The law required labor organizations to obtain the affirmative authorization of non-members before the organization may spend their fees for the union’s political contributions and expenditures to influence an election or to operate a political committee.
The Attorney General’s Office will file a writ of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court, requesting the Court take the case for review. A decision from the US Supreme Court on whether or not it will take the case is not expected until early October.
For more information contact Janelle Guthrie, at (360) 586-0725 or (360) 584-3046. | 
